The Christmas story is an old familiar one to most of us, isn’t it? In sermons and Sunday school lessons, Christmas pageants, carols and Bible readings, we have all heard the story loads of times. And besides just hearing the story, sometimes I feel like I have actually seen it. That’s probably because of all of the Christmas cards and nativity scenes I’ve seen that depict the old familiar images of a cozy stable, a newborn wrapped and laid on a bed of hay, awe-struck shepherds, and exotic, camel-riding wise men pointing to a distant star. I can’t help but wonder how close the images in my mind are to the reality of the scene when Jesus was born. Probably not very close at all. But even so, if there is one Bible story that most of us know front and back it is the Christmas story.
However, our familiarity with this old, cherished story can numb us to the wild, surprising unexpectedness of how it all first unfolded. Our theme for this Christmas season is SURPRISE! Each week leading up to Christmas we will examine some of the big surprises in the Christmas story! Like so many flies Luke 1:26-38 invites us to settle in on the wall of Mary’s house to witness one of the most surprising and mysterious conversations that has ever taken place in the history of the world. Like all Christmas surprises I think God loves to watch us, His children, delight ourselves in the wonderful, unexpected thing that happens in these verses. I hope you can join us as we enjoy God in the midst of this surprise!